Antenna assembly for a vehicle

ABSTRACT

An antenna assembly includes a base, a modem, a top lid and a housing. The base is composed of an aluminum material. The modem is disposed on the base. The top lid is for the base, and the top lid includes at least one antenna element disposed on an exterior surface. The housing covers the top lid and base. The top lid acts as an electro-magnetic barrier for the modem. A communication cable is connected to the modem at one end and extending to and connected to a vehicle internal router with a vehicle modem at the other end.

CROSS REFERENCES TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

The Present Application is a continuation application of U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 17/178,200, filed on Feb. 17, 2021, which is acontinuation application of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/570,448,filed on Sep. 13, 2019, now U.S. patent Ser. No. 10/931,325, issued onFeb. 23, 2021, which is a continuation-in-part application of U.S.patent application Ser. No. 16/237,678, filed on Jan. 1, 2019, now U.S.patent Ser. No. 10/511,086, issued on Dec. 17, 2019, each of which ishereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.

STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT

Not Applicable

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Field of the Invention

This invention relates to antenna assemblies for vehicles.

Description of the Related Art

In wireless communication systems for vehicles, a modem for the vehicleis typically placed a great distance away from an antenna in order toprevent electro-magnetic signals from the modem from interfering withthe antenna. This often requires a long coaxial cable wired throughoutthe vehicle.

General definitions for terms utilized in the pertinent art are setforth below.

BLUETOOTH technology is a standard short range radio link that operatesin the unlicensed 2.4 gigahertz band.

Code Division Multiple Access (“CDMA”) is a spread spectrumcommunication system used in second generation and third generationcellular networks, and is described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,901,307.

GSM, Global System for Mobile Communications is a second generationdigital cellular network.

The Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (“UMTS”) is a wirelessstandard.

Long Term Evolution (“LTE”) is a standard for wireless communication ofhigh-speed data for mobile phones and data terminals and is based on theGSM/EDGE and UMTS/HSPA communication network technologies.

LTE Frequency Bands include 698-798 MHz (Band 12, 13, 14, 17); 791-960MHz (Band 5, 6, 8, 18, 19, 20); 1710-2170 MHz (Band 1, 2, 3, 4, 9, 10,23, 25, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 39); 1427-1660.5 MH (Band 11, 21, 24);2300-2700 MHz (Band 7, 38, 40, 41); 3400-3800 MHz (Band 22, 42, 43).

Antenna impedance and the quality of the impedance match are mostcommonly characterized by either return loss or Voltage Standing WaveRatio.

Surface Mount Technology (“SMT”) is a process for manufacturingelectronic circuits wherein the components are mounted or placeddirectly onto a surface of a printed circuit board (“PCB”).

The APPLE IPHONE® 5 LTE Bands include: LTE700/1700/2100 (698-806MHz/1710-1785 MHz/1920-2170 MHz); LTE 850/1800/2100 (824-894MHz/1710-1880 MHz/1920-21701 MHz); and LTE 700/850/1800/1900/2100(698-806 MHz/824-894 MHz/1710-18801 MHz/1850-1990 MHz/1920/2170).

The SAMSUNG GALAXY® SIII LTE Bands include: LTE 800/1800/2600 (806-869MHz/1710-18801 MHz/2496-2690 MHz.

The NOKIA LUMIA® 920 LTE Bands: LTE 700/1700/2100 (698-806 MHz/1710-1785MHz/1920-2170 MHz); LTE 800/900/1800/2100/2600 (806-8691 MHz/880-960MHz/1710-1880 MHz/1920-2170 MHz/2496-2690 MHz).

The long coaxial cable that connects a modem to an antenna on a vehicleleads to signal losses due to the length of the coaxial cable. Thus,there is a need for placement of a modem in proximity of an antenna fora vehicle system.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

One aspect of the present invention is an antenna assembly comprising abase, a modem, a top lid and a housing. The base is composed of analuminum material. The modem is disposed on the base. The top lid is forthe base, and the top lid comprises at least one antenna elementdisposed on an exterior surface. The housing covers the top lid andbase. The top lid acts as an electro-magnetic barrier for the modem.

Another aspect of the present invention is a wireless communicationassembly for a vehicle comprising a base, a modem, a top lid, a housing,a router and an edge computing device. The base is composed of analuminum material and attached to the vehicle. The modem is disposed onthe base. The top lid is for the base, and the top lid comprises atleast one antenna element disposed on an exterior surface. The housingcovers the top lid and base. The top lid acts as an electro-magneticbarrier for the modem.

Yet another aspect of the present invention is an antenna assemblycomprising a base, a modem, a top lid, a housing and a communicationcable. The base is composed of an aluminum material, the base comprisinga body, an interior surface, a sidewall and a plurality of heatdissipation elements extending from the interior surface. The modem isdisposed within the base and on the plurality of heat dissipationelements. The modem comprises at least one of a communication chip, aGNSS reception component, a security access module or a mobile phonecommunication component. The top lid comprises at least one antennaelement disposed on an exterior surface. The communication cable isconnected to the modem at one end and extending to and connected to avehicle internal router with a vehicle modem at the other end. The toplid and base act as an electro-magnetic barrier for the modem. Theconnection from the vehicle internal router to the modem by thecommunication cable allows the vehicle internal modem to operate on acommunication protocol of the modem.

Yet another aspect of the present invention is a wireless communicationassembly for a vehicle comprising a base, a modem, a top lid, a housing,a vehicle internal router and a communication cable. The base iscomposed of an aluminum material, the base comprising a body, aninterior surface, a sidewall and a plurality of heat dissipationelements extending from the interior surface. The modem is disposedwithin the base and on the plurality of heat dissipation elements. Themodem comprises at least one of a communication chip, a GNSS receptioncomponent, a security access module or a mobile phone communicationcomponent. The top lid comprises at least one antenna element disposedon an exterior surface. The communication cable is connected to themodem at one end and extending to and connected to a vehicle internalrouter with a vehicle modem at the other end. The top lid and base actas an electro-magnetic barrier for the modem. The connection from thevehicle internal router to the modem by the communication cable allowsthe vehicle internal modem to operate on a communication protocol of themodem.

The present invention eliminates the signal loss over the cablesconnecting the modem to the antenna since the modem and antenna are inrelative proximity.

The present invention also replaces several coaxial cables with a singlecable.

Having briefly described the present invention, the above and furtherobjects, features and advantages thereof will be recognized by thoseskilled in the pertinent art from the following detailed description ofthe invention when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is an exploded view of an antenna assembly for a vehicle.

FIG. 2 is a top plan view of a base portion of an antenna assembly for avehicle.

FIG. 3 is a side elevation of the base portion of FIG. 2 .

FIG. 4 is a side elevation view of a housing for an antenna assembly fora vehicle.

FIG. 5 is a side elevation view of an antenna assembly for a vehiclewith a partial cut-away view.

FIG. 6 is a top plan view of an antenna assembly for a vehicle.

FIG. 7 is a top plan view of a top lid for an antenna assembly for avehicle.

FIG. 8 is a top plan view of a modem for an antenna assembly for avehicle.

FIG. 9 is block diagram of an antenna assembly connect to an internalmodem of a vehicle.

FIG. 10 is block diagram of an antenna assembly connect to an internalmodem of a vehicle.

FIG. 11 is an illustration of a vehicle with an antenna assembly.

FIG. 12 is an illustration of a vehicle with an antenna assembly connectto an internal modem of a vehicle.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

An antenna assembly 25 is shown in FIG. 1 . The antenna assembly 25preferably comprises a base 60, a modem 50, a top lid 40 and a housing30. Alternatively, the antenna assembly comprises a base 60, a modem 50,router (not shown), a top lid 40 and a housing 30. The base 60 ispreferably composed of an aluminum material. The modem 50 is disposed onthe base 60. The top lid 40 is to cover the base 60 and modem 50, andthe top lid 40 preferably comprises at least one antenna elementdisposed on an exterior surface. A radiofrequency cable 70 is attachedto the modem 50 and secured to the base 60 by bolt 71. The housing 30covers the top lid 40 and the base 60. The top lid 40 acts as anelectro-magnetic barrier for the modem 50 to maintain theelectro-magnetic signals inside of the base 60 to prevent interferencewith the antenna signals.

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3 , the base 60 includes a body 61 with aninterior surface 62. A side wall 63 defines an interior compartment 65in which a first plurality of heat dissipation elements 66 a-66 e and asecond plurality of heat dissipation elements 67 a-67 e. An aperture 64extends through the body 61 for access by at least one cable. The base60 is preferably composed of a die-cast aluminum material to preventelectro-magnetic signals from the modem 50 from interfering with theantennas on the top lid 40. In this manner, the modem 50 is capable ofbeing placed in proximity to the antennas on the top lid 50 withoutinterference from electro-magnetic signals with the antennas on the toplid 40.

The first plurality of heat dissipation elements 66 a-66 e and thesecond plurality of heat dissipation elements 67 a-67 e dissipate heatthat is generated by the operation of the modem 50.

The sidewall 63, in addition to acting as electro-magnetic barrier, alsoprovides a structure for placement of the top lid 40 thereon.

As shown in FIG. 3 , the base 60 preferably has a height H2 ranging from0.5 inch to 1.0 inch, a height, H1, ranging from 0.05 inch to 0.15 inch,and a height, H3, ranging from 0.15 inch to 0.30 inch The basepreferably has a width ranging from 2.5 inches to 3.5 inches, and alength, L1, ranging from 6.0 inches to 8.0 inches. The aperture 64 ispreferably from 1.0 inch to 1.25 inches across.

As shown in FIG. 7 , the top lid 40 comprises a first antenna element42, a second antenna element 43 and a third antenna element 41.Preferably the first antenna element 42 is a multi-band antenna forcellular communications such as disclosed in Thill, U.S. patent Ser. No.10/109,918 for a Multi Element Antenna For Multiple bands Of OperationAnd Method Therefor, which is hereby incorporated by reference in itsentirety. Alternatively, the first antenna element 42 is a multi-bandantenna for cellular communications such as disclosed in He, U.S. Pat.No. 9,362,621 for a Multi Band LTE Antenna, which is hereby incorporatedby reference in its entirety. Alternatively, the first antenna elementis a 5G Sub 6 GHz antenna or a mmWave antenna.

Preferably, the second antenna element 43 is selected from the group ofantennas consisting of a WiFi 2G antenna, a WiFi 5G antenna, a DECTantenna, a ZigBee antenna, and a Zwave antenna. The WiFi 2G antennas arepreferably 2400-2690 MegaHertz. The WiFi 5G antenna is preferably a 5.8GigaHertz antenna. Alternatively, the second antenna element 43 operatesat 5.15 GHz or at 5.85 GHz. Other possible frequencies for the secondantenna element 43 include 5150 MHz, 5200 MHz, 5300 MHz, 5400 MHz, 5500MHz, 5600 MHz, 5700 MHz, 5850 MHz, and 2.4 GHz. The second antennaelement 43 preferably operates on an 802.11 communication protocol. Mostpreferably, the second antenna element 43 operates on an 802.11ncommunication protocol. Alternatively, the second antenna element 43operates on an 802.11b communication protocol. Alternatively, the secondantenna element 43 operates on an 802.11g communication protocol.Alternatively, the second antenna element 43 operates on an 802.11acommunication protocol. Alternatively, the second antenna element 43operates on an 802.11ac communication protocol.

The third antenna element 41 is preferably a GPS/GLONASS module.

Those skilled in the pertinent art will recognize that other antennatypes may be used for the first antenna element 42, the second antennaelement 43 and/or the third antenna element 41 without departing fromthe scope and spirit of the present invention.

The top lid 40 is preferably composed of an aluminum material, at leaston a bottom surface. Alternatively, the top lid 40 is composed ofmaterials that can act as a barrier to electro-magnetic signals.

The modem 50 preferably includes at least one of a computationcomponent, a communication chip 55, a switch, an antenna switch circuit,a GNSS reception component 56, a security access module 53, a mobilephone communication component 54, and a power supply source. Thecomputation component preferably includes a CPU 51, a memory 52, and aninterface (I/F) component. The modem 50 preferably operates for cellularprotocols including 3G, 4G, 4G HPUE and 5G technology. HPUE is HighPower User Equipment, and is more specifically a special class of userequipment for a cellular network, such as a LTE cellular network.

Preferably, the housing 30 is composed of a polypropylene material. Asshown in FIGS. 4, 5 and 6 , the housing 30 preferably has a height, H4,ranging from 50 to 90 millimeters (mm), more preferably from 60 to 80mm, and most preferably from 65 to 75 mm. The housing 30 preferably hasa length, L2, ranging from 100 to 250 mm, more preferably from 150 to200 mm, and most preferably from 160 to 190 mm. The housing 30preferably has a width, W1 ranging from 50 to 100 mm, more preferablyfrom 60 to 90 mm, and most preferably from 65 to 85 mm. An internalwidth W2 is preferably 70 to 80 mm. A width W3 is preferably 10 to 15mm. The housing 30 has a sidewall 32, a crown 33 and a rear wall 31. Thewalls of the housing 30 preferably have a thickness ranging from 2 to 7mm, and most preferably are 5 mm.

Another embodiment of the invention is set forth in FIGS. 9-12 . Theantenna assembly system is used as a remote modem plus an antenna plus aserial communication system for upgrading existing installed routers to5G sub 6 GHz, or adding a failover modem. To upgrade an existing routerto 5G with a new internal modem, a technician must: remove the routerfrom the vehicle; take the router apart to remove the modem; install anew modem; install the router in the vehicle; and test the router toverify the new modem is working properly.

To upgrade an existing router to 5G using an antenna assembly of thepresent invention, a technician must, leveraging the already-installedcoax cables (as shown in FIG. 9 ): loosen the existing antenna on avehicle roof; cut the coax cables; add a coax connector to two of thecables; use one coax cable for powering the antenna assembly and forserial Ethernet communications; use the second coax cable for GPS/GNSS;connect a coax-to-Ethernet combiner and power injector to the router'sspare Ethernet WAN port to 12V power (it combines Ethernet and power andconveys them over coax) and to an ignition sense; configure the routerto use the Ethernet port as the WAN if it is not already configured;test the router to verify it is communicating over the new modem; removethe existing antenna and cables; disconnect the coax cables from therouter; remove the antenna from the roof of the vehicle; install the newantenna and connect the coax cables to the router; connect the injectormodule to the router Ethernet, vehicle power and ignition sense; connectthe combiner module Ethernet connector to the router; configure therouter to use the Ethernet port as the WAN if it is not alreadyconfigured; and test the router to verify it is communicating over thenew modem.

FIG. 9 illustrates the removal of the existing antenna 900 of a vehicle,and the installation of an antenna assembly 25 of the present invention.FIGS. 10-12 illustrate the connections between the antenna assembly andthe existing router 125 of the vehicle 1100. The antenna assembly 25preferably comprises a base 60, a modem 50, a CPU 51, a combiner 92, apower regulator 94, and a plurality of antenna elements 41, 42, 43 and44 within a housing 30. Four coaxial cables 131, 132, 133 and 135 areconnected from the antenna assembly 25 to connectors on the vehicle. Thecoaxial cable 135 is connected to an injector 105, the coaxial cables132 and 133 are connected to WiFi connectors 161 and 162 of a router125. The coaxial cable 131 is connected to a GPS/GNSS connector 160 ofthe router 125. The injector 105 comprises a reset button 95, a SIM card96, a USB connection 97 and a power-conditioning unit. The router 125preferably comprises a modem 130, an Ethernet or USB WAN connector 170,LTE connectors 163 and 164, an ignition sense and 12 Volt connector 171which an ignition sense cable 185 and 12 Volt cable 190 connect thereto.

Using the present invention, there is no need to remove, open theexisting router, remove and replace modem module, close the router,re-install the router, test the router and modem.

Using the present invention, installation is quicker and a lower risk(no static discharge accidental damage to the router or modem due toopening the router).

Signal loss is typically higher at 5G mid-band frequencies thantraditional cellular, and those losses are mitigated if not eliminatedby the present invention. Using the modem that is embedded in theantenna housing avoids cable loss and thereby extends coverage range. Asshown in FIG. 10 , the connection from the vehicle internal router 125to the modem 50 by the communication cable 134 allows the modem 50 to belocated remotely from the vehicle internal router 125 and closer to theat least one antenna element 41 to reduce a connection length from theat least one antenna element 41 to the modem 50.

A user of the antenna assembly of the present invention can continue touse the software they have been using with their existing router.

The combiner 92 preferably inputs a wide area network connection fromthe router for send and receive data to/from Internet, and an ignitionsense to put the unit to sleep and draw minimal power when the ignitionis off. The combiner 92 also inputs twelve volts to power the antennaassembly 25, which allows the combiner 92 to perform power regulationand surge protection, and pass the power up to the modem 50 in theantenna housing 60. The combiner 92 also inputs a SIM card for a carrier(AT&T, Verizon, etc.) subscriber identity module remoted from the modem50 so that it can be easily accessed in the trunk of the vehicle 1100.All of the above are combined and sent up to the antenna assembly 25over the existing coaxial cable, or over the Ethernet plus other wires.

He, U.S. Pat. No. 9,362,621 for a Multi Band LTE Antenna is herebyincorporated by reference in its entirety.

Abramov et al., U.S. Pat. No. 7,215,296 for a Switch Multi-Beam AntennaSerial is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.

Salo et al., U.S. Pat. No. 7,907,971 for an Optimized DirectionalAntenna System is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.

Abramov et al., U.S. Pat. No. 7,570,215 for an Antenna device with acontrolled directional pattern and a planar directional antenna ishereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.

Abramov et al., U.S. Pat. No. 8,423,084 for a Method for radiocommunication in a wireless local area network and transceiving deviceis hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.

Khitrik et al., U.S. Pat. No. 7,336,959 for an Information transmissionmethod for a wireless local network is hereby incorporated by referencein its entirety.

Khitrik et al., U.S. Pat. No. 7,043,252 for an Information transmissionmethod for a wireless local network is hereby incorporated by referencein its entirety.

Abramov et al., U.S. Pat. No. 8,184,601 for a METHOD FOR RADIOCOMMUNICATION INA WIRELESS LOCAL AREA NETWORK WIRELESS LOCAL AREANETWORK AND TRANSCEIVING DEVICE is hereby incorporated by reference inits entirety.

Abramov et al., U.S. Pat. No. 7,627,300 for a Dynamically optimizedsmart antenna system is hereby incorporated by reference in itsentirety.

Abramov et al., U.S. Pat. No. 6,486,832 for a Direction-agile antennasystem for wireless communications is hereby incorporated by referencein its entirety.

Yang, U.S. Pat. No. 8,081,123 for a COMPACT MULTI-LEVEL ANTENNA WITHPHASE SHIFT is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.

Nagaev et al., U.S. Pat. No. 7,292,201 for a Directional antenna systemwith multi-use elements is hereby incorporated by reference in itsentirety.

Abramov et al., U.S. Pat. No. 7,696,948 for a Configurable directionalantenna is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.

Abramov et al., U.S. Pat. No. 7,965,242 for a Dual-band antenna ishereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.

Abramov et al., U.S. Pat. No. 7,729,662 for a Radio communication methodin a wireless local network is hereby incorporated by reference in itsentirety.

Abramov et al., U.S. Pat. No. 8,248,970 for an OPTIMIZED DIRECTIONALMIMO ANTENNA SYSTEM is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.

Visuri et al., U.S. Pat. No. 8,175,036 for a MULTIMEDIA WIRELESSDISTRIBUTION SYSTEMS AND METHODS is hereby incorporated by reference inits entirety.

Yang, U.S. Patent Publication Number 20110235755 for an MIMO RadioSystem With Antenna Signal Combiner is hereby incorporated by referencein its entirety.

Yang et al., U.S. Pat. No. 9,013,355 for an L SHAPED FEED AS PART OF AMATCHING NETWORK FOR A MICROSTRIP ANTENNA is hereby incorporated byreference in its entirety.

From the foregoing it is believed that those skilled in the pertinentart will recognize the meritorious advancement of this invention andwill readily understand that while the present invention has beendescribed in association with a preferred embodiment thereof, and otherembodiments illustrated in the accompanying drawings, numerous changesmodification and substitutions of equivalents may be made thereinwithout departing from the spirit and scope of this invention which isintended to be unlimited by the foregoing except as may appear in thefollowing appended claim. Therefore, the embodiments of the invention inwhich an exclusive property or privilege is claimed are defined in thefollowing appended claims.

We claim as our invention the following:
 1. An antenna assemblycomprising: a base composed of an aluminum material, the base comprisinga body, an interior surface, a sidewall and a plurality of heatdissipation elements extending from the interior surface; a modemdisposed within the base and on the plurality of heat dissipationelements, the modem comprising at least one of a communication chip, aGlobal Navigation Satellite System (“GNSS”) reception component, asecurity access module, or a mobile phone communication component; a toplid for the base, the top lid comprising at least one antenna elementdisposed on an exterior surface of the top lid; a housing covering thetop lid and the base, wherein the housing has a height ranging from 50to 90 millimeters (mm), and a housing wall thickness ranging from 2 to 7mm; a communication cable connected to the modem at one end andconfigured to connect to a vehicle internal router at an opposite end;and a combiner configured to input a wide area network connection fromthe vehicle internal router for send and receive data to and from theinternet using a 5G communication protocol; wherein the top lid and thebase act as an electro-magnetic barrier for the modem; wherein aconnection from the vehicle internal router to the modem by thecommunication cable allows the modem to be located remotely from thevehicle internal router and closer to the at least one antenna elementto reduce a connection length from the at least one antenna element tothe modem.
 2. The antenna assembly according to claim 1 wherein thevehicle internal router is located within a vehicle.
 3. The antennaassembly according to claim 1 wherein the base is composed of a die-castaluminum material.
 4. The antenna assembly according to claim 1 whereinthe base has a width ranging from 2.5 inches to 3.5 inches, and a lengthranging from 6.0 inches to 8.0 inches.
 5. The antenna assembly accordingto claim 1 wherein the base has a height ranging from 0.5 inch to 1.0inch.
 6. A wireless communication assembly for a vehicle comprising: abase composed of an aluminum material, the base comprising a body, aninterior surface, a sidewall and a plurality of heat dissipationelements extending from the interior surface; a modem disposed withinthe base and on the plurality of heat dissipation elements; a top lidfor the base, the top lid comprising at least one antenna elementdisposed on an exterior surface of the top lid; a housing covering thetop lid and the base, wherein the housing has a height ranging from 50to 90 millimeters (mm), and a housing wall thickness ranging from 2 to 7mm; a communication cable connected to the modem at one end andconfigured to connect to a vehicle internal router at an opposite end; acombiner configured to input a wide area network connection from thevehicle internal router for send and receive data to and from theinternet using a 5G communication protocol; wherein the top lid and thebase act as an electro-magnetic barrier for the modem; wherein aconnection from the vehicle internal router to the modem by thecommunication cable allows the modem to be located remotely from thevehicle internal router and closer to the at least one antenna elementto reduce a connection length from the at least one antenna element tothe modem.
 7. The wireless communication assembly according to claim 6wherein the base is composed of a die-cast aluminum material.